This is an extraordinarily flavorful dish enhanced by a good-quality white wine vinegar, which is the scapece (the Italian word for something marinated with vinegar or a ceviche) part of the dish, melded with the flavors of sweet onions, ripe tomatoes, pine nuts, and currants and basil. The dish can be served either a side dish or as an antipasto.

[photo: Clifford A. Wright]

Yield: Makes 4 servings
Preparation Time: 35 minutes

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 small onion, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 teaspoons sugar

1/4 cup white wine vinegar

1 1/2 cups crushed tomatoes, preferably fresh

10 ounces frozen lima beans

1 tablespoon currants, soaked in tepid water 15 minutes and drained

1 tablespoon pine nuts

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh basil

1. In a skillet or an earthenware casserole, preferably, heat the olive oil over medium heat, then cook the onions and garlic until translucent, stirring occasionally so the garlic doesn't burn, about 8 minutes.

2. Dissolve the sugar in the vinegar. Pour the vinegar and tomatoes into the skillet or casserole and cook 5 minutes so the vinegar evaporates a bit. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the frozen lima beans, currants, pine nuts, and black pepper. Cook 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the basil and after 1 minute transfer to a serving platter or bowl to let the preparation come to room temperature before serving.

There are so many interesting flavors and combinations here [in Mediterranean Vegetables]. Having had the honor of eating some of these dishes cooked by Cliff’s own hand, I know how good they really are. I can’t wait to cook them myself. - Deborah Madison, author of Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone and The Greens Cookbook

Small plates that are big on flavor are always in season at my house. This is another wonderful collection of Mediterranean recipes from Clifford Wright [Little Foods of the Mediterranean] that will send me into the kitchen with pleasure. Wright strikes just the right note between scholarly and sensual. - Joyce Goldstein, author of The Mediterranean Kitchen and Saffron Shores